The team from Stockport-based specialist family law firm, Higgins Miller, outline the changes to cohabitation law that have been put forward in a recent government consultation.
Earlier this year, a consultation was held to discuss changes to the rules on financial matters arising from separation of unmarried couples. This consultation ended on the 14th August 2026, and a bill has yet to have been put forward.
The relevant consideration arising from the consultation is whether cohabiting couples should be given increased rights and a better framework when dealing with finances arising from separation to better align with the structure in place for married couples. It was proposed that the increased rights should be applicable to committed relationships involving 3 or more years of cohabitation or if the partners have a child together.
It aims to improve the financial remedies available to eligible couples when tackling financial disadvantage, needs, maintenance and child welfare. However, the Act does not intend to create full equality between married and cohabiting couples as they do not wish to introduce the standard 50/50 split for non-married couples.
The reason for the consultation was concern that those in cohabiting relationships sometimes experience financial inequality during separation. One example of an improvement the consultation aims to tackle is one partner who looked after the home / children having better financial rights to reflect their contribution to the relationship.
Some advantages of a potential reform would be that it better protects couples who do not choose to marry and creates a more concrete structure for separation matters. However, some disadvantages are that it would increase litigation and result in the Family Courts becoming busier and more delayed. Further, it can be argued that those who choose to cohabit rather than marry do so to avoid financial implications and as such, would not wish to have these obligations placed onto them.
Although, no bill has been passed as of yet, there has recently been a consultation regarding whether committed cohabiting couples should be given increased rights under family law to aid in financial matters arising from separation.
Sources:
- Family Law Reform 2026: Divorce, Cohabitation & Inheritance
- 2026 Cohabitation Reforms
- https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/a-fairer-end-to-relationships
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